The Failed Masquerade Party
by JoPo08
Summary: Edward tries to get Alphonse to go to a "dating" masquerade party, with intentions of having him meet a specific girl. Edward's plans just never seem to work though... Rated T for sexual references and cursing.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This isn't going to be a long story, only three chapters. But, it was fun to write, and it's more of an experiment to branch out of the type of writing I usually do. So, enjoy, and please, a review?**

* * *

"Come on Al, don't be such a sour puss," Edward sat on the stairs, his back to Alphonse's room, waiting for his brother to open the door.

The door opened a little, and Alphonse peeked his head out. "I don't _need_ a girlfriend."

"I know, you're just going to grow old, and then–"

"OKAY! I'LL GO TO THE PARTY!" The door slammed. Edward faintly heard his brother mumble through the door, "For God's sake..."

Edward grinned. "You're going to find somebody at this party."

"What makes you so certain?"

"You mean besides the fact that you're a nice person, and that if you went out more often, girls would fall at your feet?"

Alphonse gave in and opened the door halfway again. "Is there a reason you're not saying the reason?"

"Well, sure there is!"

There was an awkward pause.

Alphonse sighed. "You're not going to tell me, are you? Are you setting me up?"

"Me? No! Of course not! Winry is helping too. I have approved, or disapproved, of who Winry has brought to me."

"You're a weirdo. A weirdo who wants a night alone with Winry."

"I know I am. And, yes, I'd send you out into the cruel world that is a damn evil _party_, just so I could get a night alone. With Winry."

Alphonse slammed the door again, frustrated. He yelled to Ed through the door, (though unnecessary) "What kind of _costume_ is _this_!? It's a freaking purple tux, Ed! And, what's with the mask next to it?"

Edward was trying hard to contain his laughter. "It's a masquerade party! You're supposed to dress funny. It's made for people like you!"

"You mean for people who don't have a life!?"

"No, for people who don't have someone to share a bit of their life with. And, for people who are too shy to go out and _find_ that person."

"Sure. Whatever." Alphonse put the costume on somewhat awkwardly, since everything was a bit tight. "What's with the tightness, Ed?"

"Makes you look muscular, right?"

"I don't know, neither do I care." Alphonse looked back to the bed, and saw a green tie, and a green top hat. "Hey, could you come in here, I need help."

Edward got up from the stairs and opened the door. "Sounds like you're done yelling." Without asking, he went for the tie. He held it up in front of Alphonse, who nodded. There was another awkward silence as Edward put the tie on Alphonse.

"Well, you look pretty good, Al! Do you want me to leave now?"

"I'm not totally sure. I'm just feeling a little... bleh."

"Butterflies?"

"No, I don't think so. Oh well." Alphonse walked toward the mirror. "Hey, toss me the hat." Edward did, and Alphonse put it on. He made it a bit crooked. "Hey! I look a like the big guy at the circus! But," He looked down, "I'm not exactly as tall..."

"You can't be too much taller than the ladies!"

"Hypocrite."

Edward burst. "I AM NOT TOO SHORT THAT A RINGMASTER COULD SWALLOW ME WHOLE WITHOUT..."

Alphonse snuck out of the room quietly while Edward was still ranting. He waited in the living room for his brother to cool down.

This was why he always got ready for anything early.

"Ready to go meet your future bride," Ed asked with a grin.

"ED!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, I'm here early! I said Sunday, and it's Saturday! We left the vacation early... **

**But anyway, I HATE this chapter. It does have a plot twist in it, so be prepared! This wasn't where I thought this was going, but I let my instincts reign. Feel free to shoot me in the head, but do so in a review.**

The car pulled up to the curve. "You're getting better at driving, Ed."

"Why, is that a compliment? I thought you were still mad at me."

"Thanks, you just messed up the moment. See you soon."

"Eh, you're walking home." There was a pause as Alphonse looked at his brother incredulously. "Just joking, but I have to stay up for this thing? I'm going to watch some horror movies without you. Possibly with Winry, once she drops her friend off."

"Bye."

Edward waved as he left, and Alphonse watched as the car started to pull away. He turned around to get in, and was nearly blinded by color.

All around him was a rainbow. There were many feathers, and the "mysterious" part of the party was definitely upheld; everyone was in a mask. Also, according to Edward, many would be changing their voices.

_For people like me, huh Ed? What does THAT imply? _Alphonse took a deep breath, and walked toward the double doors.

Once he paid and actually got in the door, he noticed that everything was very fancy, which was a word that never really described anything in Risembool. He'd have to ask about that.

As Alphonse looked at everyone around him, in their costumes, he found a major flaw in Ed's plan.

How was he going to find out who this "mysterious date" was? And, how was she going to find him? Since neither his brother or Winry was at the party, how were they to know?

Alphonse's thoughts were interrupted by a tap on his shoulder. He turned, and a feather tickled his face. He resisted the urge to sneeze. But, he saw that the feather came from a mask.

"I noticed you were alone," the girl said. He could tell because it was a terrible impression of an adult tone.

Alphonse decided to put on a fake tone, just to try it. "What an observation. You can drop the fake tone though. I have no clue who you are." Success!

"As I don't know who you are," her voice was lighter now, and more natural, "I hadn't planned on coming, as many of the people here, including you, but it's a party, c'mon. So, would you like to dance?"

"I'm afraid I have two left feet," he replied. That actually wasn't true, he was a very good dancer, according to Winry, but then again, she was teaching Ed at the same time, and anyone was better than Ed.

"Well, then let's have a couple of drinks, and then maybe..." She pressed against him, and swayed her hips a bit.

That was a sign! No wonder so many people showed up to these parties, they came for more than a relationship.

Unlike her mask, his didn't cover his entire face, and he could tell he was blushing. "What's the problem, big boy? Did you eat too much of the tuna sampler?" (1)

Alphonse looked past her, trying not to gaze _down_. She was very beautiful; her figure was an hourglass, her red dress showed just enough... But what was he thinking? He knew that she knew she was starting to get to him. (How could he not, she was beautiful!)

Alphonse didn't dare look her in the eyes. "I don't even know your name." But, he didn't hear her response, since his eyes were now pasted on another sight.

There, in the corner, was another woman. She wore a modest turquoise dress. Alphonse couldn't see her facial features, but he imagined she was stunning. (2)

"Hey, are you even listening?" The woman before Alphonse was now tapping her foot impatiently. "I said my name was Marie. But, here, you can call me the Spider Queen." Indeed, he now noticed the strands of black that ran through her dress to resemble a web.

"Then you may bring some other gentlemen into your web." He walked past Marie, and headed over to the corner.

Up close, the mystery woman was even more beautiful. Either that, or he was becoming wonderfully delirious from his previous encounter. He racked his brain for something to say, but his mouth wasn't functioning, and he didn't want to sound like "Spider Queen".

"You look unhappy," he finally settled upon, and was even smart enough to keep his tone.

Her voice was a bit deeper than he expected, probably a fake one, but he didn't bother (3). "Unhappy doesn't seem right. I'm here for a friend, she just wouldn't come unless I was here. So, bored is more like it."

"Bored? You have people to talk to, many many people."

She looked up at him, and he saw her mesmerizing blue eyes. "I'm the one who's not looking for sex, that's why I'm in the corner."

"And you're implying I am?"

"Why else would you come to this corner?"

"For perhaps the same reason as you, and possibly hoping to find company with the same interest."

She paused. "I'm not even supposed to be here."

"That's what I keep thinking. My friend didn't even come with me." Alphonse wasn't exactly sure why he didn't say "brother", but it was too late to amend. (4)

"Oh."

There was an awkward silence, but it was broken by a caterer. "Anything to drink?"

They both reached for the same glass. Alphonse gestured for her to have it, and then he took his own.

After two glasses, they were both relatively chatty. She preferred to not tell her name, and he kept his confidential. Neither divulged on their personal lives, for whenever she didn't tell him something, he wouldn't tell her the same thing about him. Equivalent exchange. They were still able to converse; they were having fun and laughing... time seemed to slip by before it was half an hour to midnight.

"So, I had to tell her to bug off. I mean, she was acting a bit like a bitch!"

Alphonse laughed, and his voice slipped up. The drinks weren't exactly making him think straight. He had stuck to only five(5); It was under eight, so he wouldn't get sick . "Sorry, it's just something a friend of mine would do. It's pretty funny." He laughed a bit more, but stopped when he saw her face frozen.

"You're... you can't be..."

And at the wrong moment, Alphonse was tapped on the shoulder. He turned...

And was met with a slap to the face.

"How could you!?" It was Marie. "You leave me alone, and don't see me the entire party, and then you go see my friend?" Her yelling started a crowd to form.

The woman that he was with (Alphonse had named her Aquamarine in his mind, since it was a much prettier name than Turquoise) stepped between Marie and him. "Marie, stop! There are plenty of other people who would love to..." She looked at Alphonse, and stopped talking.

"Wait, so even worse, the guy you set me up with _denies_ me, and goes to you?"

"Set me up? What are you–" Alphonse regretted not being able to think entirely clear.

Aquamarine tugged on his arm. "C'mon Al," she muttered.

"How do you know my name?" he whispered to her as she led him away. There was no response.

* * *

Alphonse felt dizzy, he wanted to collapse, to hurl,_ something_ else but walk. But, eventually, Aquamarine had stopped tugging him, and had pushed him into a chair.

After some assessment, he realized he was outside, and it was dark. The stars weren't entirely visible, since lamps were lit. "How do you know my name?" Alphonse asked, his voice slurring a bit. His vision was blurring, but he was still a bit sane.

Her voice wasn't the same as it was before. "Oh, god Al, you're drunk! How many glasses did you have?"

"Um..." He paused to think about it. "Five?"

"Oh no..."

"Who are you? Like, who are you really?"

"I'm taken."

"Why?"

"Not now, Al. Please?"

He stood up, and a wave of vertigo hit. He sat back down. Aquamarine walked over to him, and leaned down to feel his forehead. Her mask fell off, and landed on his lap.

Aquamarine was Winry.

_Winry_.

"Winry?"

"Yeah, it's me Al."

A sudden flurry of anger came over Alphonse. "No. I can't be! You're with Ed! He's your _boyfriend_! What are you doing here? You can't cheat on him, why were you here at... _this_ kind of party? Why..." He took his mask off, and stood up. "... _why_ are you here, and talking to me, and being _with_ me?"

He sat back down, his head whirling in time with his stomach. How could he see _Winry_ like he did? Why was she being so nice back there, when she didn't know him? He felt betrayed.

"Al? You look pale, do you have a fever?" She leaned forward and put her hand on his forehead.

He flinched and grabbed her arm."Don't touch me." (6)

She jerked away and instead fell on him. He squirmed from her, and then the chair tipped over.

Winry laid on Alphonse's chest. She looked way from him. "Oh no. No no no no no."

**(1) Sorry, it's a song reference "Go Google It"**

**(2) The short intention span of men sometimes, Alphonse is a man, and sadly he must fall under the spell, especially since he was a man for less time than other men and didn't get as much time to control his emotions. Right?**

**(3) Once again, nothing really matters when you leave a beautiful woman for a [stunning] woman, huh?**

**(4) Embarrassment? Al? No! Well, yeah, kinda. **

**(5) Poor, innocent Al. You'd think five of anything was okay, since it's a small number... NOOO! **

**(6) I want you to know people. I DO NOT support AlxWin. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Oh no... the final chapter. I'm not sure I like the way it ended, but... oh well. Alphonse wasn't supposed to be drunk, Ed was supposed to drop a bigger F-bomb, it wasn't supposed to end so abruptly... but Marie got her just desserts, and I'm happy.**

**Remember: Please make a review, even if it's just to shoot me! And if you like this, please tune into my other stories, there's a lot in the making!**

"Winry?" Standing at the doorway was Edward. His face was shrouded by the shadow of the light, or Al just wasn't seeing much now. "Al?"

"Edward, this _isn't_ what it looks like. I'm not... we're not..."

"You're _on top of_ my brother, for fuck's sake! Al, why? And, why wouldn't you tell me? You didn't think I'd be mad, did you?"

"Brother? That's you, right?"

"Of course it's me Al! Who the fuck else would it be?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"Didn't know what?"

"Didn't know it was Winry."

"How would you not know it's fucking Winry?"

"She never told me." Winry had gotten off of Alphonse by now, and he stood up, still shaky.

Now Edward's glare was focused on Winry. "Why wasn't he told? And, why the fuck is he wobbly?"

"I didn't want to tell him because I knew he wouldn't listen to my explanation, like you won't right now! Al is drunk," Winry now glared at Edward, "and I wonder who _didn't_ teach him about drinking?"

"Now you're putting the fucking blame on me!? You have some nerve, woman."

Another crowd gathered at the entranceway to the patios. Many of the men were grinning, and the women were all gossiping. Besides, basically _everyone_ knew the Elric brothers, and the mechanic Winry Rockbell.

"Would you just let me explain, you stubborn jackass!?"

Edward plugged his ears. "Okay, now you can scream and excuse your fucking self all you want!"

"Edward Elric!"

"I'm not listening!"

"You are SUCH a kid, Ed!"

Alphonse was now in between the two of them, and the yelling was now giving him a migraine. "BOTH OF YOU STOP YELLING FOR A MOMENT!"

There was a silence.

"Thank you. How long have you two been together? Hell, how long have you [liked] each other? You can't seriously get mad at each other for this. Now, explain Winry."

"Thank you Al. You know Marie, the girl we set up with Al?"

Alphonse snorted. Winry gave him a strange look and continued. "Marie wanted me to go, and wouldn't go unless I went. I don't know what happened with her and Al, but they split and Al came over to me. I didn't know it was him, but I didn't want to give any info away about me. I didn't even want to be here in the first place, and I don't want people to start finding my house and asking me for a date, BECAUSE I'M DATING **YOU**. By the time I found out that the person I was hanging out with was Al..."

"Oh," Edward said simply.

Alphonse looked away. "I'm sorry for thinking you were cheating on Ed, "

"You thought I was cheating on Ed too!?"

"'Course I did. But I will admit, you're pretty, very pretty–"

"Back on topic Al." Winry and Edward said together.

"You guys didn't let me finish. You're pretty, but I don't even think you and I would be together, even if you _were_ cheating on Ed... that didn't come out right, huh?"

"It came out just fine," Edward lied. He walked over to Winry. "I'm sorry, Winry. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes, I forgive you."

A round of applause started from the inside of the building. Men were passing money to each other, obviously collecting the winnings from bets.

Winry was now holding hands with Ed. "Did they seriously think this was a show?"

"I don't think so. Oh, wait," Edward turned around and walked back to Alphonse. "What did you do to yourself, Al? Am I really that bad of a role model?"

"You!" A woman shrieked. She strode up to Edward and Alphonse. "You just totally dumped me for another woman, WINRY in fact! What does she have that I don't?"

Winry ran back over. "Marie! What is wrong with you? And why _wouldn't_ someone like me?"

Edward's mouth was agape. "This is Marie? Man, she doesn't seem as nice _or_ pretty as when I first met her. Sorry for such terrible choicing."

"How– how DARE you!"

Alphonse moved away from his brother a bit. "Marie, I don't really take an interest in women, no, sluts, who would like to get in bed with a man as soon as she sees him."

Everyone was shocked. Edward wanted to pull Alphonse out of there before he said anymore un-Al-like-things(1). The women started chatting again, and the men were taking more bets.

"Marie, is that what you really did?" Winry asked.

"I- I-" Marie got even closer to Alphonse. She nudged Edward away, and wrapped her arms around Alphonse. "You had a chance," she whispered.

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Marie was yanked back by her hair by Winry. "Don't even touch him, you bitch! Or Edward, now that I know what's going through you're sick head." She kept tugging on Marie's hair. "I don't want to see you ever again." With that, Winry threw Marie to the ground, and looked over at Edward. "C'mon, let's go."

"Agreed." Edward grabbed Alphonse and herded him toward the car. The crowd had made a pathway for the trio. If they had forgotten what power the three of them had, they were now reminded. (2)

**DIDN'T THAT SUCK!?!?**

**(1) VERY unlike Al.**

**(2) Except for Al. They weren't really reminded about him.**


End file.
